Method of producing cocoa powder.



UNITED sTAT s PATENT o FioE.

FRIEDRICH ERNST FERDINAND NEUMANN, OI WANDSIBE'K, NEAR HAMBURG.

. GERMANY.

METHOD or rnonuomq coooA POWDER.

No Drawing.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented July 16, 1912.

. Application filed January 4, 1910. Serial No. 536,407.

ing out the fabrication, but also injuriouslyaffect the quality of the product. Thus it has become evident that in dissolving or opening out raw, or partly or wholly roasted cocoa-beans, or coarse fragments of same partly deprived'of the shells 0r husks, the alkali-solution does not enter into the innermost parts thoroughly, even should the action be allowed to take place for a considerable length of-time. The consequence is, that these innermost parts remain unopened, and that the greater part of the unmelted fat included in the cellular tissue remains unaffected, even by unusually strong alkaline solutions. Partly roasted fragments of cocoa-beans have to be subjected to a subsequent roasting in -a humid state without the shells or husks, whereby in spite of the greatest precautions, empyreumatic gases penetrate the cellular tissue of the beans and give the product a disagreeable taste and smell, ,that can -only be moderated by the aid of spices. If the treatment of the beans or fragments is carried on without the shells being removed the taste of the cocoa is also impaired and the addition of spices becomes necessary. WV'hen the cocoa-mass in a finely. ground meltedwstate is treated with alkaline solutions or with water, it is impossible to completely expel the confined moisture by evaporation, which in any casemust be carried out with greatest precaution in order to maintain the aroma and to prevent the albumin from changing. The presence of moisture in the final product may lead to the creation of mold, which impairs the taste to such extent that again it is necessary to resort to spices.

It is usual to employ in the,process of melting and disengagin the fat from the .tissue cells horizontal grlnding mills heated 'to a high temperature. This great heat together with the intense rubbing action, to

-which'the slowly flowing cocoa-mass is subjected for an unduly long time, im airs the taste to a large extent, and there ore also makes the addition of spices. necessary. Even the pressing according tort-he processes heretofore employed has injurious effects, not-only on the quality of the fat or butter pressed out, but also on the taste of the cocoa, If cocoa-fragments or cocoa-kernels are pressed in the manner described in 65. the German Patent No. 89251 the fat, it is .true, is gained clear and clean, and by Ilepeated disintegration and pressing it is possible to expel the necessary amount of of fat, however,"it is absolutely impossible to obtain the desired degree of fineness of "the constituents, free of fat to such a degree as is necessary to satisfy the highly refined taste, on account of the lack of a certain 75. amount of fat, necessary for the adhesion on the surface of the grindin stones ore rollers. Should an effort be made to obtain a certain degree of fineness by unduly long and permanent grinding, this can only be done at the expense of the aroma and good taste. I If the pressing is carried out when the cocoa-mass is in a finely ground melted state, part of the tissue constituents will penetrate the piston or cover of the press into the cocoa butter or fat, thus making it necessary to purify and filter the latter, I which is a troublesome task. Though a certain amount .of fat is necessary for en ablinga mechanicalrubbin to the desired degree of fineness, the fat hereby also can (if present in a surplus amount) become such a hindrance that the desired fineness will notbe arrived at in the grinding process. -Neither a thin liquid cocoa-mass hav ing itsnatural amount of fat, nor dr'y cocoa deprived ofits oil or fat, is in a suitable 'con-' dition forthe highly important operation of rubbing to a high degree of fineness, because it impossible to carry on the rubbing to the highest degree, and in the second instance the deficiency offat dur ing the rubbin operation results in altering the aroma an taste. grinding the cocoa kernels or fragments ob: tained from roasting, breaking, peeling or hulling and cleansing operation, on fluted,- roughened, orsmooth polished rolls to g,

fat even to produce cocoa destitute or poor 70 in the first instance the surplus fat makes These drawbacks are overcome by powder of the finenessof coarse meal'at 31,119 i I temperature not exceeding 35 0., (the melting point ofcocoa fat, which contained in the cocoa kernels). This temperature is considered low in the art, in comparison with those higher temperatures, at which the cocoa fat turns into a liquid state, and at which cocoa kernels have been ground heretofore. The grinding rolls abovedescribed are arranged either side by side, or in pairs one over the other.

Should it be desired to allow alkalis, solutions of the same, or water, to actmainly on the fibers of the cellular tissue, the albumin or the starch of the cocoa, the cold cocoa powder is saturated in the liquid, which, according to the object of the product and according to the place of growth of the beans, is allowed to act on the same for a greater or smaller length of time in a cold or warm state. The moisture is then expelled by evaporation in suitable pans or receptacles, preferably in a vacuum, and then the mass is brought to the press. The evaporation, however, is only necessary when the powder has been treated with an alkali solution. The drawback incident to the usual treatment of fragments, wherein the alkz line solution does not enter the innermost parts of the cocoa fragments, is

hereby overcome. Should iiv be desired to allow the alkalis to act on the fat to a greater extent, the cocoa powder is heated until the fat emerges from the single particles more or less to the desired degree before treatment with alkalis and the like is carried on. The drawback met with in operating on l'ully homogeneous melted and finely rubbed cocoa-mass (due to the impossibility of thoroughly expelling the water of the alkaline solution) is hereby completely avoided, because the porosity of the powder permits allmoisture to easily evaporate. All further treatmentof the cocoa in manufacturing the final product can be carried on to better advantage. If now the cocoa-mass, which still has a distinctly tangible grain, is given a pressure, it is quite impossible for the outer layers of the material under the press to become too dense and impermeable, as is the case with the fully finely-ground, melted cocoa-mass. The pressure given to the mass in the press is evenlydistributed throughout and a sutlicient number of minute cavities and fine channels are upheld, by which the cocoa fat finds its way out from the center of the body of the pressed material. If it is desired to obtain a final product that gives satisfaction in every respect, the main operation, 2'. 6., rubbing to the desired degree of fineness should not take place before the beginning of the pressing operation nor after completing this operation, but the rubbing must be carried out after a preliminary pressing, that is, while-there is still a certain amount of fat present suflicient for carrying out the rubbing operation. By this preliminary pressing the coarse pulverulent prepared material, brought into a pasty condition by heating the same, is deprived of so much of its fat that it attains a consistency and such a degree of adhesion. that the mass during the subsequent rubbing action clings to the rolls of the rubbing machine. The limit-to which the oil is to be expelled during the first pressing depends on the proportion'of fat present inthe different qualities of beans or mixture of beans used. lVhen the desired degree of fineness is obtained by rubhing, once or repeatedly in the aforesaid manner, further pressing may be resorted to, and the sired. The press-body or cake thus produced is crushed or broken to pieces by any desired means, and then sifted or sized in any preferred way.

If it is desired to obtain unopened or undissolved cocoa, the process described above is modified by omitting the dissolving by aid of alkalis and the evaporation to expel the'moisture, but without sequence of grinding, preliminary pressing, rubbing to the desired degree of fineness, and subsequent or final pressing.

From the foregoing it will be understood that as a specific example, the process may pressure continued as long as devarying the be carried out as follows:The cocoa-kernels or fragments, roasted, hulled and cleaned in any well known manner, are ground toa powder of the fineness of coarse meal. Thereupon a certain amount of moisture is expelled by pressing the ground material in a press-box of known description to a certain extent, that is to say, to such an extent that sutlicient fat is left to maintain a slightly fatty consistency in the pressed. mass, which is necessary [or carrying out the next operation. The material thus partly pressed is now rubbed to an absolutely fine and homogeneous mass in a suitable machine, whereupon it is finally pressed. If the coarse meal is subjected to the action of a-lkalis it is necessary to expel the moisture by evaporation bol'oro pressing. If it'ie desired to increase the action of the alkalis the coarse meal is heated.

I claim:

1. The method of producing cocoa-pow dcr consisting in grinding roasted, hulled and cleaned cocoa-kernels or fragments to the fineness of coarse meal, pressing the ground material until only suliiciont l'at remains to maintain a slight fatty consistency, rubbing the pressed mass to a greater degree of fineness, and finally pressing the rubbed mass.

2. The method of producing cocoa-powder, consisting in grinding at low lempcrature roasted, hulled and cleaned cocoa kernels or fragments to the fineness of coarse meal, pressing the ground material until only 'suflicient fat remains to maintain a slight fatty consistency, rubbin the pressed mass to a eater degree-of fineness, and finally pressing the rubbed mass.

3. The method of producing cocoa-pow.

der, consisting in grinding at low tempera.- ture roasted, hulled and cleaned cocoa-kernels or fragments, to the fineness of coarse meal, subjectin the ground material to the action of alkahs, expelling the moisture by evaporation, pressing the material thus treated until only su cient fat remains to maintain a slight fatty consistency, rubbing the pressed mass to a greater degree offineness, and finally pressing the rubbed mass.

tion,press1ng I I til only suificient fat remains to maintain a 4. The inethod 'of' producin cocoa-powder, 'consisting in grinding at 0w temperature roasted, hulled and cleaned cocoa-kernels or fragments to the fineness of coarsev meal, heating thepowdered material, subjecting the heated material to the action of alkalis, e

slightly fatty consistency rubbing the pressed mass to a greater eg-ree of fineness and finally pressing the rubbed mass.

FRIEDRICH ERNST FERDINAND NEULLANHQ Witnessesi I 1 CHARLES HARRY Roncmmn,

ERNEST H. L. Mnmmmnorr.

lling the moisture by eva om?- f the material thustreate '25 

